It took years for the Toronto Blue Jays to earn an unwanted reputation. As Juan Soto found big money in New York and Shohei Ohtani and Roki Sasaki picked the palm trees and promise of Los Angeles, the Jays were seen as baseball’s free-agent bridesmaids.
But reputations can change fast. And in just months, Toronto’s near-miss narrative has faded away for a new reality. The Blue Jays, for at least one winter, are now baseball’s most eligible bachelor.
While many major-market teams still await a winter splash, the Blue Jays have already signed Dylan Cease, Cody Ponce, Tyler Rogers and Kazuma Okamoto to contracts totalling $337 million, over $130 million more than any other franchise has spent so far.
None of those additions matched the magnitude of Soto or Ohtani, but Cease ranked second among starters on The Athletic’s free agent big board while Ponce and Rogers, league sources said, had highly competitive markets. Okamoto represents a significant splash in the Japanese market, too, after the Jays’ misses on Sasaki and Ohtani. While it could require subtraction from an already record-high payroll, a team source said the Jays can still add further.
The Jays have leveraged their lauded clubhouse culture and carried the momentum of a World Series appearance. It has translated into offseason success. Free agents entered the offseason wanting to talk to the Jays, Blue Jays assistant general manager Mike Murov said at the Winter Meetings. Toronto has become an undeniable destination.
“It’s nice to be in a position where key players actually want to talk to you,” Murov said. “They are optimistic about the direction of the organization, so that’s opened a lot of conversations.”
Cash remains king in free agency. The Jays couldn’t have signed any of the players they did without significant dollar figures. Both Cease and Rogers’ contracts were above Britton’s projections, though Okamoto’s $60 million deal fell below. Organizational culture and championship potential may be tiebreakers or preferences, but they’re meaningless without money. The Jays, though, have had cash to throw around for years — it’s how they even became finalists for players like Soto and Ohtani. But there’s a difference between a seat at the table and a contract signed. This winter, players are excited when Toronto calls.
“It makes it easier to have conversations with a wide range of players,” Murov said.
Cease didn’t watch much of the 2025 postseason after his San Diego Padres were eliminated. But he watched Game 7. Cease saw a Blue Jays club, mere outs from a title, enough to know Toronto was a “championship-calibre team,” he said at his introductory press conference.
The right-hander met with the Jays over video call early in the winter, when the club’s coaches and executives explained their plan to maximize his potential.
“You can just tell that it’s a buttoned-up organization,” Cease said. “They want to win, and it was obvious.”
After meeting with other teams, Cease instructed his agent, Scott Boras, to work out a deal with Toronto. Days later, the seven-year contract was complete.
Dylan Cease liked what he heard from the Blue Jays before signing a seven-year, $210 million deal with deferments. (Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
As Ponce walked his dog in early December, the starting pitcher received a call from his agent, David O’Hagan, relaying Toronto’s three-year, $30 million offer. Ponce abandoned the walk, ran back to his house and informed his wife. He had already talked to Bowden Francis and other Blue Jays players, doing a deep dive into the organization’s family culture and roster construction, he said. There may have been a larger contract offer out there for Ponce, one league source said, but the KBO MVP chose the Jays.
“I think nobody wants to be the first loser or second place,” Ponce said. “But the way everybody did it on that team, it looked like a lot of fun to me when I was watching and that is something that I like to be a part of.”
Rogers, a submarine reliever, “perked up” when the Jays called, he said. Toronto was the first team to show interest in Rogers this offseason and he was intrigued by the organization’s “great reputation throughout the industry.” His market was full of suitors, a league source said, with a contract ask that grew to $15 million per year on a multiyear deal. Ultimately, Rogers signed with Toronto for three guaranteed years and $12.33 million per season.
“Everybody that I’ve talked to that has played for the Jays,” Rogers said. “They don’t say you’re gonna like it there or it’s gonna be good there. They say you’re going to love being in Toronto.”
It’s easy to praise an organization that just rewarded you with life-changing money. The glowing reviews that Rogers, Cease and Ponce heaped on Toronto are said at almost every free agent’s introductory media availability. Maybe this is just more of the same. But, Blue Jays manager John Schneider said at the Winter Meetings, there’s a difference this offseason, away from the cameras. The Jays aren’t forced to sell positivity, Schneider said. Toronto’s 2025 season sells itself.
“That’s been a shift,” Schneider said. “I feel like in years past, with some high-profile players, it’s kind of been us selling us to them, whereas I think the players know what they’re getting into as soon as they start talking to us.”
That’s the value of a World Series run, even when you fall two outs short. Not only does it prove a roster is capable of success, but when you win, people wonder how you’re winning. At the Winter Meetings, one Blue Jays official said, everyone wanted to ask about the Jays — agents, reporters and executives from other teams. The same conversations happened between players. Cease and Rogers talked to Kevin Gausman before signing with Toronto, they said. Ponce talked to Francis and others. Those current Jays shed light on the resources, culture and development success stories behind Toronto’s 2025 success.
Money wins in free agency, but the Jays still show off their sparkling workout room in winter presentations and bring players (including Kyle Tucker) to tour their development complex in Florida. Those investments are selling points, but it’s not like they’re brand new this year. The Dunedin, Fla., complex was completed in late 2020. The Rogers Centre renovations of player and family facilities finished ahead of the 2023 season. But the industry-wide recognition of those assets took time. A World Series run certainly expedited the process. It’s as if all eyes were dragged north for the first time in a decade and liked what they saw.
“Getting into the World Series definitely helps,” Schneider said. “The two teams that are the last ones standing, they’re shoved down everyone’s throat. I think within that it was a likeable team that played the game the right way, and players kind of wanted to see what we’re all about.”
General manager Ross Atkins is constantly asked about increased free-agent interest in Toronto this offseason. He responds with a similar answer each time: While some markets still have higher “cachet,” he says, Toronto has long been one of the top destinations in baseball.
For the most part, that’s true. Toronto is the sixth-biggest city in MLB by metropolitan population. The Jays have spent to a top-10 Opening Day payroll for the past three years and made the playoffs in four of the past six seasons. They landed Hyun-Jin Ryu, George Springer and Gausman in the past half-decade, all on long-term deals worth at least $80 million. They began acting like a big-market franchise on the open market, yet the bridesmaid narrative still grew.
Talk of Toronto’s free agency silver medals didn’t arrive from nowhere. They did finish as unsuccessful finalists for Ohtani and Soto. They were also the second-place team for Sasaki, the young starter confirmed ahead of the World Series. Perhaps 15 years ago, a then-middling franchise like the Jays wouldn’t have even been a finalist for elite free agents. But those offseason whiffs were still undeniable. When you have a shot at the industry’s top talent, everyone notices when you miss. So far this winter, the Jays haven’t missed.
The Mets and Dodgers may still outspend Toronto on the top remaining bats, including Bo Bichette, Alex Bregman and Tucker. They’ll probably beat them on some future free agents, too. But when it comes to luring players this winter, a World Series run seems to have levelled the playing field. At least for one offseason, it’s turned Toronto’s silver medals into gold.